'GLAMshoot' Winner Tells All

By
|May 17, 2017

Piranha Fitness Studio recently did a BINGO challenge for all of their studio members. The goal was to blackout a bingo board to be entered into the drawing for a chance to win their very first GLAMshoot. Bingo board squares included attending specific classes, tracking water consumption, parking in the furthest parking spot, doing something active on a Sunday, or even bringing a friend with you to workout! There were several people who completed all of the tasks that were required, but one special client won our grand prize of a GLAMshoot. Read below about Leslie Lowry and her fitness journey and also see some of the beautiful photos she modeled for.

A special thanks to our photographer Abby Williams with Abigail Brooke Photography, our wardrobe sponsor Shannon Marley with the Lululemon showroom of College Station, TX, and our stylist Randa Carrabba of Southern Jewlz. Each individual on our team is active and healthy in their own unique ways which created one healthy powerhouse for the GLAMshoot.

Name: Leslie Lowry

Age: 25

Occupation: Grad student

1. What brought you to Piranha Fitness Studio in the first place?

Some of my friends had been going to piranha and asked me to go to a cycling class with them. It just so happened to be the 1,000 calorie ride which was crazy for me because I hadn’t really worked out much since starting grad school. I was dying by the end, but Lindsay and Maddie did a really good job of keeping the class motivated. At the very end Lindsay started getting us to think about three words that were important to us to keep us going for the last bit of the class and to really push ourselves to the finish. I felt so exhausted but so motivated and determined to keep going that I just knew Piranha was what I needed to help me get healthier.

2. What's your favorite type of workout?

I love power training and cycling (they’re both so good I can’t decide between them). I feel very empowered by power training because I can tell I’m getting stronger and improving myself. It’s also been really nice for building friendships and community because of the class size. Cycling, on the other hand, is just so fun, and it’s nice that there are so many different moves and types of songs to keep things interesting throughout the entire class. It’s a really good way to get some cardio for someone like me who hates running. Theme rides are also super fun!

3. Where do you find your motivation, your drive, and your will power?

To some extent, Piranha has made motivation easy because I love the classes and the community, the instructors do a great job of pushing us, and competitions like Bingo make goal setting fun and easy. Aside from that, I really just made the decision to get healthier after a couple of years of grad school filled with junk food, stress, and not working out. I realized that working out helped me feel better mentally and physically, and it has become a really important part of taking care of myself. I make sure I schedule that time for myself at least a few times a week, and for the hour or so that I’m at the gym I try really hard to challenge and push myself whether it’s by going a little faster or choosing slightly heavier weights than the last time I did it. I’ve also made a lot of friends at Piranha who I can text, and we can hold each other accountable to going and to challenging ourselves.

4. What's the best health and fitness secret you've been taught?

I think one tip that has helped me a lot is just to do what you can and don’t worry about doing things perfectly or the same as other people. At the gym, the instructors really emphasize doing what you can and that if you need to modify a movement, take it a little slower, or change something to make it work for you, you should do that. For me this means not comparing myself to other people but pushing myself to do what I can. It’s okay if I can’t do lunges with weights as heavy as other people because what matters is that I keep moving, do the lunges, and push myself to add a little more weight the next time I try. With nutrition it’s the same, I have to find what I can do and what works with my schedule and my budget (aka super cheap and easy). If that means choosing steamfresh veggies instead of the freshest produce, that’s what I’ll do. With health and fitness, nothing matters if you can’t maintain it so I think it’s important to find what you can do and keep at it. This isn’t really a secret, but it’s something helpful that I’ve learned from a lot of different people including the instructors at Piranha.

The first time I ever tried Lululemon was actually for the glamshoot. I put on the pants and was just amazed at how they felt. They’re made from the new fabric that’s supposed to give the sensation of wearing nothing, and it was SO nice. I wore it for the photoshoot and then to work out later that night, and it was so comfortable and easy to move in. I even went back the next day and bought another pair of pants because they were just too good.

6. What's the best advice you can give to those reading about health & fitness?

I think the best advice I would say is just find what you enjoy/what works for you and keep doing that. I used to hate working out. I hate running more than probably anything else so when I would try to run as my exercise I could never maintain it. Coming to Piranha has just made things easy for me. I have fun and enjoy the types of workouts that are offered, the instructors are all so helpful for keeping me motivated, and having classes on a set schedule helps keep me on track because I just add that into my schedule with work and everything else. All the things I love about Piranha might not work for other people so I would say find what you like and what works for you. This will help you actually want to do it which, in turn, will help you maintain it.

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